How to Turn On Light Theme on the Xbox One

Anyone can turn on the Light Theme on the Xbox One and brighten up their Xbox One, Xbox One S and Xbox One X experience. Here’s how to do that.

Like on your smartphone, your Xbox One’s theme color dictates how your favorite areas on the console look. With the Light Theme on Xbox One enabled, every part of the Xbox One experience switches to white or light gray instead of the dark gray and black that Microsoft turns on at the factory. This feature isn’t the Xbox One Fall Update’s best feature, but it is one of the most impactful. The Light Theme helps the Xbox One’s software feel more modern and less claustrophobic than in the past.

Before you can use the Light Theme on Xbox One you need the latest software update. If your console is already connected to the internet and Xbox Live, you already have it. This update launched in mid-October and it is required to connect to the online gaming service. If you haven’t connected your console to Xbox Live since mid-October 2017, you need do that now. This update also adds a new Home area design and makes it possible for you to transfer your game files from your old Xbox One to a new Xbox One without downloading them again.

Power on your Xbox One, and sign in to your Microsoft Account. Your Microsoft Account needs to have adult access to make any major changes, including turning on the Light Theme.

Once you’re signed in, press the Xbox logo on your controller to open the Guide.

Use your Xbox Controller’s left joystick to highlight the Settings window inside the Xbox Guide. It’s the option on the far right with the cog.

Select Settings. It’s the second option from the top of the menu.

Inside the Settings app is every option your Xbox One has. Use the left joystick on your controller to highlight Personalization in the menu on the left edge of your screen.

Your first instinct is to select My Color & Background. Don’t do that. Those options are for switching the highlight color of your profile and the background of your home page. Instead, select Theme and Motion.

Use the A button on your Xbox One Controller to select System Theme.

By default, your console uses the Dark Theme. Move the joystick down and select Light.

Now go back to the Home screen by pressing the Xbox button on your controller. The bottom of the home screen is white if you successfully switched to the Light Theme on your console. Remember, because themes are a system setting, everyone else will have the Light Theme when they log in to play games too.

Try the Light Theme on your Xbox One for a few days to see how you like it. During the day it, it shouldn’t change your television’s brightness that much. Expect to adjust your television’s brightness at night because of the change though. Unfortunately, there’s no way for you to switch the theme on and off depending on what time of day it is. You can return to the Settings app and switch between Light Theme and Dark Theme whenever you want though.

Warframe

Many free-to-play games revolve around strategy or civilization building. Warframe is one of the free Xbox games that you can download now that doesn’t. It’s a third-person shooter.

The Tenno have just awoken after centuries of sleeping in stasis. Warframe takes its name from the suits that the Tenno use to do battle with the game’s other races. There’s the Greiner, who are clones of humans. The Corpus belong to a technology company with lots of robotic innovation at their disposal. Sentients consist of an alien race that’s back to do battle.

Warframe features both player-vs-player combat and a single player experience.